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Health Reform NOT To Be Blamed For Rate Hikes!

FinanceGuy — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 20:36:26 +0000

Kathleen Sebelius, a top President Obama administration official, says that health insurance companies should not be blaming new rate hikes on health reform. And seriously, health insurance companies had plenty of rate hikes before the new health reform bill ever passed.

Sebelius is the secretary of the Health and Human Services Department. In her message, she spelled out these terms.

“to inform your members that there will be zero tolerance for this type of misinformation and unjustified rate increases.”

She also noted that any health insurance copanies that have unjustified rate increases may be barred from the new health insurance exchanges which are scheduled to start in 2014. She reminded the insurer’s that the new benefits which will be mandated under the new laws were supported by US insurance company associations.

What Are The New Benefits?

Under health reform, there will be some more benefits and increased consumer protection.

No lifetime maximum coverage amounts.
Children may be covered on a family policy until age 26.
An insurer may not cancel a policy in the middle of a coverage period unless they can demonstrate real fraud or intentional misrepresentation.

The administration says that these increased benefits should justify a 1 to 2 percent premium increase, but no more.

Long Term Care Health Insurance and Health Reform

FinanceGuy — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 18:10:12 +0000

Health Reform: Long Term Care Insurance

Long Term Care Health Insurance

One thing that really surprises me, with all of the talk and debate about heath reform, is that there has been little discussion about new long term care insurance plans. Planning for nursing care should be considered by anybody who is doing retirement planning these days, and I think that a lot of people do not consider it because they just do not know how much it costs or figure some government plan already exists to take care of that concern.

Find Out How Much Long Term Care Insurance Costs - Compare Local Quotes For Free

Since long term care health insurance is a type of heath insurance, it has been included in the new health reform bill. However, what has been included is NOT comprehensive, and it will not remove the need to plan.

The details are not totally firm yet, but you can search for the CLASS act. It proposes a voluntary long term care insurance program that workers can opt out of. It has been devised to be self supporting, so it will not rely on any federal tax money.

What We Know About The CLASS Act

If the enrolled people pay the premiums, which are scheduled to be adjusted for lower income people, and they are in the program for a waiting period (5 years), it will pay $50 a day for nursing care. This care could be from a nursing home, assisted living facility, or at home health care.

As this plan has not yet been implemented, and as it also will require a waiting period, it will not provide any immediate relief for people who need nursing care. Also note that the plan is not just for senior citizens who are of Medicare age. Disabled people of any age who meet the other qualifications could use the plan benefits.

Do We Need To Worry About Long Term Care Insurance?

This will not totally remove your concerns. Even today, nursing homes can cost over $100 a day or more. So the new plan may pay half to a third of the total price tag. It should help remove some concerns, but it is not a total solution.

Many people assume that some federal program is already in place to take care of the rest. Understand that Medicare, the federal health insurance for disabled people and seniors, only covers SHORT TERM CARE. Medicaid, the US health insurance for low income people, forces people to spend down most of their assets to qualify. So there are some governement programs, but they are hardly perfect either.

Nursing Care Solutions

One common solution is long term care insurance (LTCi). There are even tax qualified plans that can be used as a tax deduction today. There are also LTCi alternatives like savings or annuities and life insurance with nursing care riders. The important thing is to learn about your options, and try to choose one that will provide security for you in the future and work with your budget today!

For more information, you might find this interesting: Pros and Cons of Long Term Care Insurance

Otherwise, we welcome any discussion in the comments!

Health Care Reform Bill : Where Are We Now?

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 03:14:59 +0000

Health Care Reform Bill

So where are we, and President Obama, and the US Congress, on the health reform bill? I guess it is true that in order to understand the present, we have to take a look at the past. Right now, the whole health care reform thing seems pretty hard to understand no matter what we know, but let’s take a step back anyway.

Health Reform Ideas Are Not New

The idea of health reform is not new. In fact, FDR hoped to include some sort of national health care in social security legislation way back in 1935. The next president, Harry Truman, had hoped to create a national fund that we would all pay into that would provide the money for his program. That did not work out, but since that time, every Democratic president, and quite a few Republican presidents, have tried to provide affordable health coverage to more Americans.

A Quick History of US Health Reform

Progress has been made. We do have a national health care program for senior citizens and retired people. This is, of course, Medicare. Even though it seems like it is an American institution, and has been the model for other nations, Medicare has only been around since the early 1960′s. And you may be surprised to know that it passed after a lot of heated debate and the predicted ruin of American medicine. We also have Medicaid and CHIPS, which are state and federal efforts to cover people and families with lower incomes.

Since then, President Bill Clinton tried and failed to pass a comprehensive health reform bill. This bill was used by Republicans to attack the Democrats, and many credit it with a lot of conservative wins in congress at that time.

Health Reform in the USA Today

However, times have changed. Right now, employers and business groups are really concerned about the rising costs of health care coverage. They are actualy advocating for change. In addition, health insurance companies have said they will accept reform, but just want to be included in the discussion. Once the public option was brought up, the health insurance companies have not been as cooperative as we might hope. But, at least, they said they would try.

The House and Senate came up with their own versions of a health care reform bill, but never seemed to be able to cooperate enough to turn one into law. Meawhile, pundits on both sides of the issue are getting a lot of press time on TV.

March, 2010 Health Reform Update

On March 3rd, 2010, President Obama announced that he expected Democratic congress people to get in line behind him, no matter how concerned they were about their chances for being elected again.

Here is the latest update from the New York Times:

In a letter to Congressional leaders sent March 2, Mr. Obama said he was open to pursuing four specific ideas raised by Republicans during the Blair House forum, including establishing “health courts” to resolve medical malpractice claims and encouraging the use by individuals of tax-advantaged medical savings accounts.

But even as Mr. Obama sent the letter, his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, and top health policy adviser, Nancy Ann DeParle, went to Capitol Hill to meet with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid and prepare a final legislative package that they would be able to pass with simple majorities in each house, using a parliamentary tactic known as reconciliation to avoid a Republican filibuster.

So what do you think the solution is? Almost everybody agrees we need US health reform, but nobody seems to be able to agree on how we should accomplish this. Feel free to register for free and comment!

Health Insurance Reform Simple Explanations

admin — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:29:01 +0000

Are There Simple Explanations for Health Insurance Reform?

Lots of us, who have been involved in the health insurance industry, are very aware that we need reform. But what we really need right now is for some health insurance reform simple explanations! The people need to understand why we need some improvements, and how our govenment may be able to help us. This would have to stop all of this tea party craziness and the misinformation being spread around TV and the net. Right?

Health Reform Reality Check

If you are an American, even if your are not a President Obama supporter, pease visit the White House Health Reform reality check website. I do not care which side of the issue you are on. If you are not willing to read or hear what the duly elected president of your country has to say, you really should not be in a position to comment.

The last thing any website owner wants to do is to alienate any visitors. But I do believe it is time for us to really understand health reform options. It would also be nice to understand what is going on in the Congress right now. And you should also understand that majority of conservative congreemen also support health reform. They just don’t seem to like today’s bill as it is presented.

The Urgency of Health Reform

Even if your job gives you a top quality medical plan, you should understand you have no guarantees. Rate hikes can make your company change its mind on the next month or next year. Read more, from The White House Blog, on the Urgency of Health Reform.

This issue is not about tea parties, Sarah .Palin’s hand-teleprompters, President Obama’s use of a real teleprompter, or any other silly stuff. It is about our nation’s health and life.

It is about us not being slaves to our company because we are worried no private insurer will cover us. It is about hard working Americans with serious illnesses who have used up their benefits or been dropped for trivial reasons. It is also about millions of unemployed or underemployed citizens who have to choose between buying groceries or paying on their COBRA (if they are lucky enough to qualify for COBRA).

Note: Tips on Unemployment Health Insurance

So, President Obama and Congress, let’s get together ad make this happen.

Obama Car Insurance Discounts?

admin — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 18:15:58 +0000

Are Ads for Obama Car Insurance Discounts Real?

Since President Obama gets so much press, and since insurance reform (health) gets a lot of attention, it has to be very tempting for advertisers to tie these things in to their ads. It certainly gets attention, and at first glance, it may look credible. But you understand that most of the press about insurance reform is directed at health insurance reform, and not car insurance reform. Also understand that most insurance is regulated at the state level.

I have nothing against a good advertising, but I think you would be right to be skeptical about Obama car isurance reform ads. There may be some pending bills about this subject, but I am not aware of anything as dramatic as the current health reform debate.

This came to my attention when I checked another website for stats about how people found a particular article. This article – Over 50 Car Insurance – was found because an internet visitor searched for Obama Car Insurance Reform. This was because there was a link to an Obama Health Insurance Reform article on the same page, but not in the article. Search engines are good, but they are not perfect. But it was kind of a happy accident because it made me realize that people were taking these ads seriously!

Here Are Some Good Things to Know About Car Insurance

Almost everybody needs car insurance to be a legal driver in the USA. All states require a proof of financial responsibility in order to drive. For most of us, this means we need car insurance.
It is very possible to get a better deal by comparing car insurance rates and plans. Top insurers offer different discounts. They also have their own rate charts for drivers, car types, and zip codes. You probably should compare policies every year or so to make sure you are getting the best rates.

We would certainly like to invite you to run a quick quote to make sure you have the best insurance rates. We do not believe that President Obama, Congress, or anybody in the federal government endorses our website though.

Uninsurable Americans – Current Health Reform Update

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:58:23 +0000

What About Uninsurables Under Health Reform?

One of my biggest concerns with health insurance today is the problem of uninsurables. That’s why Obama’s (and the Democrats) support of health reform was always attractive to me. I always believed that the biggest problem, and one that should be addressed first, were people who could not obtain medical coverage because they were already sick. I have seen this impact people, and I have seen how destructive it can be.

But I just read an article that says that the current bill will not allow these people access to the public high risk plan unless they have been without coverage for 12 months. This is just awful, and should start setting off alarm bills.

Here are problems that people have with current state high risk insurance programs:

People with a serious illness have maxed out their benefits, even though they are technically covered. Yes, this can (and does) happen all of the time with serious illnesses like cancer. You may have coverage through a private or group medical plan, but you can exhaust your plan max for all treatment, or for particular types of treatment. This happens a lot with expensive outpatient treatments like chemotherapy. Do you know what your own plan’s outpatient coverage limit is? Lots of people do not know until it becomes a problem!
What about a seriously ill person who has only lost coverage in the last 3 months (an arbitray number), but need like saving treatment today? For seriously ill people, waiting 3 months is a death sentance. What are they thinking?

This article in Yahoo outlines the problem, and addresses a specific individual with cancer.

“If you are a cancer patient and have cancer now, you can’t wait six months to go into a plan because your condition can go from bad to death,” said Stephen Finan, a policy expert with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. He called the waiting period in the Senate bill “unacceptable.”

Please Question the Uninsurable Coverage Waiting Period!

Please let your representative hear your voice. Let them know that this waiting period makes this plan just about useless as a safety net, and then hear what they have to say!

As for myself, I am struck dumb with outrage.

Who Will Health Reform Help?

admin — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:26:26 +0000

Who will Be Helped By Obama’s Promised Health Reform?

Well, a lot of us pulled the switch for Obama, and the Democratic party, because of health insurance reform. Now, darn it, it looks like Hillary Clinton had a point when she stressed that everything was not going to be so easy as her rival made it sound. But hopefully, this time we are her to stay the distance, so let’s take a look at who will be helped by health care reform.

As an aside, let me mention that I worked as a health insurance agent, and I saw many problems first hand! Many people who wanted health insurance could not get accepted by individual health insurance companies, and others could not afford the premium. Still others did have major medical, but it just wasn’t very good, and one serious illness still left them owing tens of thousands of dollars or more.

One of the reasons I do not actively market health insurance any more is my own frustration with the process and they system.

Lets look at some of the problems:

The number of people with private health insurance is declining.
The number of people without any medical plan is increasing.
Even people who do have coverage have found tha benefits are declining while premiums are increasing. Many of these people worry about how long they can keep up payments.
These worries do not just impact unemployed people, or even self-employed people, but also many business owners and those who work on contract!

The Middle Class? Well, it would be a relief for millions of Americans to know that they cannot be declined when they apply for coverage. On the other hand, the middle class will still be expected to carry the burden of premiums. Even with a tax credit to help, family premiums will still cost hundreds of dollars every month – a burden that may be between a car payment and a mortgage.

Insurers? Well, counter-intuitively, insurers may actually benefit if everybody is required to seek coverage. Of course, hopefully, these same insurers will have to accept people with health conditions, but they can spread that risk over many people. I am pretty sure that major health insurance companies will win in the end.

Small and Large Business Both small and large companies report that medical premiums are getting harder to afford. If they have a choice to provide private coverage or to contribute to a public one, it may take some stress off.

Anyway, the plan has evolved since the beginning of this latest round, and like many Americans, I am not certain of the latest details. But as the fight goes on, make sure that you keep an eye on the winners.

Feel free to register and comment too!